Welcome to Macum Creek Concerts

We lived in Austin, Texas - widely known as "The Live Music Capital of the World" - for eight years, 2008 - 2015. During those years, we fell back in love with live music, attending nearly 350 live shows by over 200 performers, at venues large and small, at solo performances and marathons like SXSW.

At the suggestion of a friend, we attended our first house concert in 2012 and we were hooked. The idea of opening our home to other lovers of live music -- friends and soon-to-be friends -- immediately struck us, and we began thinking about how we could host our own house concert series when we retired and moved back to Maryland.

And so was born Macum Creek Concerts - a house concert series on Kent Island, where we can share our love of live Americana and blues music with friends, and where we hope to make a meaningful contribution to the support of live music. We hope you'll join us.

-- Dave & Kathy Airel

How Does This Work?

House concerts aren't new, and the concept is pretty simple. We're hosting concerts (about one a month) at our home on Kent Island, across the Chesapeake Bay from Annapolis, MD.

You get in by accepting our invitation. You get invited by being on our mailing list. This is the simplest, but most important, rule. Our house concerts are private events, not open to the public. You must be invited to attend, and to be invited, you must ask to be added to our mailing list (of course, you can also "opt out" of the mailing list at any time).

Our house concerts are shared experiences. We are contributing the use of our home, chairs to sit on, a sound system for our artists to use, and some light refreshments. We ask that you contribute a minimum of $20 per person (or whatever you can afford) - every penny of your contribution goes to the artists, to help them earn a reasonable living giving music lovers like us an opportunity to hear them perform live in an intimate setting - our living room.

And since the concerts will be a hobby, not a business, and held in our living room, we reserve the right to exercise a little "home-owner discretion" in accepting reservation requests, turning away "drop-ins" who don't have confirmed reservations, and asking anyone not following the house rules below to leave. Hopefully none of this ever happens, but in the interest of setting clear expectations ... well, enough said.

And, in the spirit of a shared experience, if you're so inclined, you can also bring a snack or beverage of your choice (nothing stronger than beer or wine, please) - enough for yourself, or enough to share with others ... completely optional, completely up to you.

Still have questions? Keep reading, the sections below will probably answer them. If not, ﻿drop us a line﻿ at dave@macumcreekconcerts.com and ask ...

What Are the House Rules?

Just a few simple House Rules ...

The concert is about the music, so please respect the performer & the performance. When the music starts, the talking stops.

No smoking.

Most shows will be adults only (ages 14 and older). If we have an all-ages show, it will be advertised that way. But rule #1 will always be in effect.

Water & soft drinks will be provided, along with some light snacks. Feel free to bring your own snacks or beverage of choice (nothing stronger than beer & wine please), and feel free (but don't feel obligated) to bring enough to share with others.

Enjoy yourself. Introduce yourselves to us, to each other, and to the artist. Get to know each other before the concert, and during the intermission.

Some Shows Are Labeled "All Ages Welcome".

What Does That Mean?

One of our goals for MCC is to help our artists find a new or wider audience for their music. Sometimes this new audience can include children, as long as the child is here to listen to the music and is accompanied by a parent, grandparent, or other adult who will ensure that our house rules are followed.

These are definitely not concerts "for" kids, but they are concerts by an artist whose songs and performances are probably no more than PG-rated. If we designate a show "All Ages Welcome", it means we have checked with the artist to make sure they're ok performing to an audience that might include children (not all are).

Parents & grandparents - at these All Ages Welcome concerts, we ask you to decide whether an artist is appropriate for YOUR children. And, we rely on you to ensure that your children follow our house rules so that everyone can enjoy the music. And, finally, we rely on you to add a kid-sized artist contribution that you think is fair for your child.

The important thing is this - the room will be full, and it would not be fair to the adults if kids are running around and/or talking during the show. The entire point of these concerts is the music. So, if you choose to bring a child to an All-Ages Welcome show, we'll rely on you to make sure they're quiet and that they don't prevent others from enjoying the music.

FrequentlyAskedQuestions

What exactly is a "house concert"?

Well, not to oversimplify, but ... it's pretty much exactly that. It's a concert. At our house. And, since it's at (in) our house, it's a private, by-invitation event, intended for our friends & invited guests. It's not a business, and we don't charge "admission". We do ask, however, that guests make a contribution ($20 minimum suggested, or whatever you can afford). 100% of your contribution goes to the artist.

What style of music will I hear?

Mostly Americana (aka "roots") or blues music. Mostly, though not always, acoustic. We fell in love with dozens of the Americana & blues artists we heard in Austin. These artists perform nationally and internationally, and our hope is to catch them as they pass through our area, to share their music with us. If you're not sure what style of music this is, check out some of the artists / websites on our LINKS page.

How much are tickets?

Admission is free. Since this is not a business, we don't sell tickets. We do, however, ask that guests make a contribution ($20 minimum suggested, or whatever you can afford). 100% of that contribution goes to the artist.

How do I get invited?

Pretty simple. To receive notifications of upcoming concerts, you'll need to be on our mailing list. To get on our mailing list, click on the Contact page above and send us a message requesting to be added to our mailing list. From that point on, you'll receive emails notifying you about our upcoming concerts.

How do I reserve a seat for a concert?

When you receive a concert notification and decide you'd like to attend, simply drop us an email, or send a message via the Contact page, and tell us how many seats to hold for you. We'll respond to your email & confirm your reservation. Then, remember to bring cash to the concert - you'll be asked to leave your donation at the door when you arrive. The suggested minimum donation is $20 per person. But please remember - you must be on our mailing list to register for, and to attend, one of our concerts!

Can I invite my friends?

Of course. Only the person registering for the concert must be on our mailing list. We encourage you to bring friends & neighbors, and we'll encourage them to join our mail list once they've enjoyed one of our concerts.

How long will the concerts be?

That depends on the performer, but they will most likely be two 45-minute sets, with a 20-30 minute intermission midway through the performance.

Can I shoot pictures or video?

Photos are fine, as long as you don't use a flash (that would be a distraction for both the artist and our other guests). Videos will only be allowed if you have obtained permission from the artists. Most of the time, we have already asked the artist and we'll let you know before the concert. If we forget to mention it, better safe than sorry - check with the artist yourself.